Vriesea glutinosa Lindley, Gard. Chron. 388. 1856.
Tillandsia glutinosa sensu Grisebach, Fl. Brit. W. Indies 597. 1864; non Martius ex Schultes filius. 1830.
Tillandsia stenostachya Baker,
our. Bot. London 26: 109.1888; nom. nov. for Tillandsia glutinosa sensu Grisebach.
Vriesea stenostachya (Baker) Mez, DC, Monogr. Phan. 9: 564. 1896.
Information from S&D p1092-4
Plant stemless, flowering to 2 m high.
Leaves 7 dm long, densely purple-banded throughout;
Sheaths inconspicuous;
Blades ligulate, acute, 6-8 cm wide, flat, arching-recurved, obscurely lepidote, appearing glabrous.
Scape erect, glabrous;
Scape-bracts densely imbricate, broadly elliptic, apiculate, spotted.
InfIorescence laxly bipinnate, about 6-branched;
Primary bracts like the upper scape-bracts, about equaling the sterile bracteate bases of the branches;
Spikes linear, strongly complanate, 25-50 cm long, 3-4 cm wide.
Floral bracts imbricate but exposing the rhachis, elliptic, acute, 55-60 mm long, ecarinate, rose, subchartaceous and nerved when dry.
Sepals narrowly elliptic, obtuse, 26 mm long, nerved;
Petals bright red.
Capsule sub cylindric, 25 mm long.
Type. Wortley Hortus s n (holotype CGE, GH photo), "Caracas" Waterfall, Trinidad. Distribution. Mostly saxicolous by falls but sometimes epiphytic, 570-690 m alt, northern Trinidad.
TRINIDAD. Maracas Falls, 1845, Crueger s n (K); 27 Feb 1925, Broadway 5560 (F); 12 Mar 1926, s n (US); El Tucuche, Apr 1920, Britton, Hazen & Mendelson 1317 (US); Freeman in Herb. Trin. 9068 (TRIN); 29 Aug 1924, Broadway 5366 in part (NY); 27 Mar 1955,Aitken & Downs 43 (TRIN, US); Cerro del Aripo, 1943, Pittendrigh 1017 (US); Chaguaramal, 1944, Pittendrigh 1507 (US photo); 14 Dec 1958, Aitken & Downs 303 (US).
Variegated form called 'Galaxy'.
From Baker 1889
283. T. STENOSTACHYA Baker in Journ, Bot, 1888, 100.
T. glutinosa Griscb. Fl. Brit. Wcst, Ind. 597, non Mart.
Leaves lorate, above 2 ft. long, 2 in. broad at the middle, thin, flexible, subglabrous, deltoid-cuspidate at the apex.
Inflorescence a forked spike, the ascending branches of which are 1-1.5 ft. long;
flowers close, very ascending;
flower-bracts oblong, 2 in. long, 0.75-1 in. broad.
Calyx 0.5 in. shorter than the bract.
Petal-blade oblanceolate-oblong, 0.75 in. long.
Hab. Trinidad ; Maraccas waterfall, Dr. Crueger! Collected in 1845.
From Mez 1935
1.V. stenostachys (Bak.) Mez in DC. Monogr. Phaner. IX. (1896) 564.
Tillandsia stenostachys Bak. in Journ. Bot. XXVI. (1888) 109.
Tillandsia glutinosa Griseb. (non Mart.) Fl. Brit. W. Ind. Isl. (1864) 597.
Vriesea glutinosa Lindl. (non Wawra) in Gard. Chron. 1856, 388.
Folia ad 0.7 m longa et 60 mm lata, linearia, apice breviter acuta, haud picta. Inflorescentia furcatim pauciramosa ramis usque ad 0.5 m longis cognitis, quaquaverse florigeris. Bracteae ad 55 mm longae, dense imbricatae, haud carinatae, latissime ovales, apice rotundatae, rectae, sepala perlonge superantes. Flores fere 60 mm longi, stricte erecti; sepalis lineari-ellipticis, apice rotundatis, carinatis, ad 26mm longis. Petala bracteas superantia quam stylus breviora.
Trinidad: beim Maracas-Wasserfall (Broadway n.5560), Mt. Tucuche (Britton, Hazen und Mendelson n. 1317, Freeman n. 9068, Broadway n.5366 e.p.).- War 1856 lebend ausgestellt, hat sich aber in Kultur nicht gehalten.